NATION Shorter work week doesn't fly

Americans think of working long hours as a badge of honor.
MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL STAR TRIBUNE
When Minnesota's MTS Systems confirmed this month that it would extend its work week from four days to a full 40 hours, it was not just the end of a popular 30-year tradition at the company. For supporters of shorter work weeks, it was another sign that the idea just doesn't wash in the United States.
"America remains the reigning workaholic nation," said the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington think tank, in a report. The average worker in the United States works more than in any other rich, industrialized country.
"At the same time," the institute reported, "Americans reap fewer benefits for these extra hours, whether in the form of more vacation or holiday time or paid leave time of the sort provided by almost every other advanced economy."
Reduced work weeks are increasingly popular in Europe. Three years ago, France reduced its official work week to 35 hours, a change that analysts say has had no negative impact on the country's economy. Shorter work weeks are also common in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. Candidates for public office in Canada have argued for shorter weeks, as well.
Meanwhile, Americans have been putting in steadily longer hours since World War II, a trend that opponents say is bad for workers' health and quality of life, and a drag on productivity.
Pride gets in the way, said Paul Rupert, president of Rupert & amp; Co., a flexibility consulting firm in Washington. "Overwork is a badge of honor," he said. "People love to say, 'I worked 80 hours this week; how many hours did you work?' "
Cutbacks
That said, in the current tough economy, some companies have cut back work weeks for hourly employees as a hedge against layoffs. And some state governments, state universities and school districts are considering moving to a four-day work week to save on overhead costs.
Overwork was big in the booming '90s, Rupert said. "Now, it's more about job protection. People want to be valued, so they stay late. Hours are a proxy for value."
Even so, the idea of three weekend days is attractive to many people. Some who work 40-hour weeks would prefer to do so over four days, in a flex-time arrangement known as a compressed work week.
But forging such a deal is often an uphill battle, said Diane Cushman, director of the Minnesota Legislative Commission on the Economic Status of Women. "Companies shy away from it," she said, "because in many cases they are already getting five 10-hour days from most of their salaried workers. If you give them four 10s, you're going to get less out of these people."
Best suited to the compressed work week are shift jobs such as nursing, and work paid by the hour, Cushman said.
Some employers offer a compressed summer schedule, where employees work slightly extended hours Monday through Thursday and take half days off on Fridays.